Is galling an issue with stainless 1911s?

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Sheldrake

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My 1911s are all blue steel, but recently I've been considering a stainless Colt XSE. Many years ago I recall that galling of the slide was a problem with the stainless 1911 Hardballer when it came out in the mid-1970s. Is galling a concern with modern stainless 1911s? Should I stick with the blue steel that has always worked so well?

Thanks.

Bob
 
Galling was a problem with some of the early stainless guns but that has been corrected now.
 
It shouldn't be a problem with modern grades of stainless. I have the XSE Commander, but only 200 rds. through it so far. Can't give you a long term wear report on it yet, but I am confident that anything made recently by a quality manufacturer won't have any galling issues. Have thousands of rounds through my ss PPK/s through the years with no signs of problems yet.
 
It isn't with my SW1911. The only time it "galls" is when Colt owners give it a try. It galls them that S&W makes such a nice 1911. :D
 
Unless something has changed to make SS self lubricating, it WILL gall if run dry. I recommend either RIG for stainless or my current experiment, Brownell's Action-Lube Plus. The rails are the critical areas for galling, The underside of the barrel, where it runs against the bushing less so, but should still be lubed as the rails.
Josh
 
Galling is an issue when using identical alloys in sliding contact. The solution which is universally employed these days is to use different alloys where there is sliding contact.

Galling is no longer a consideration in decent quality modern firearms.
 
I just bought a Springfield 1911 9mm stainless.
I started with lithium grease on the rails, barrel and FLGR and it would glide nicely. I decided to field strip it at the range, wiped the grease off, and oiled it with CLP. Big mistake!
It felt gritty and sluggish and started short stroking. I stopped shooting immediatly. Took it home and cleaned it and re-lubed with Birchwood Casey high tech grease (it comes in a nice little syringe).
Now it is gliding smoothly again.
Full length stainless rails need grease.
 
I had a new stainless Colt Gold Cup that would not stop galling....finally got my money back from Colt after they tried smoothing out the galling a couple times (to the point the slide rattled around the frame). I bought another one (used) later and it has never had that problem and I just use FP-10 lube....no grease.
 
They make lubes for high pressure applications including galling such as RIG +P.Use that if you have any doubt.
 
Galling can still be a problem with new stainless firearms. I recommend vigorous lube. It's not much of a drawback compared to the rust protection you get over carbon steel.
 
Re: Grease required?

Nobody told my Sig P226ST.
Click to expand...
I have three Kimbers, a Para, and used to have a Colt that didnt get that memo as well. I use break-free. I only put RIG under the grip panels.

Galling was an issue with AMT 1911s, which were the first to be made out of stainless. It hasnt been much of an issue since.
 
Colt had galling issues with their early stainless guns too.
As stated, no stainless handgun should ever be run bone dry but the issue is really a non-issue with todays alloys.

Personally I use grease on my stainless guns because I have seen the effects of galling and would rather be safe than sorry.

Tetra is a good choice and there are others that work even better because they incorporate rust preventative properties in the formula, something Tetra doesn't do.
Oh yeah, did I mention that even todays "Vunder" stainless alloys still rust?
I still use Tetra because I still have half of a Master Pack of the stuff.
I mix just a bit of M-Pro 7 CLP in with the grease and it seems to work OK.
 
Hmmmmm........I got an AMT I shoot a lot and it hasn't gallled at all.

I do keep it well lubed though.
 
Several months ago I emailed Springfield about the galling concern. The manager of their custom shop wrote me back and said it was no longer a concern. I still keep my stainless GI .45 lubed with a thin layer of Tetra grease just in case.
 
My SA stainless mil-spec now has about 800 rounds through it and seems fine, even though I use the same Navy surplus "oil, light lubricating" that I paid 50 cents a gallon for years ago.

I have some Mili-Tec grease that my M1 and M1A like; might try that in the .;45 some day just to see what happens (or doesn't).
 
My dad had an early 25acp Bauer stainless baby Browning copy. It would gall. I just tend to use the RIG grease on SS firearms now just to be safe.
 
Just out of curiosity, what does galling look like? (Does anyone have a picture?)

Is it a buildup? Is it corrosion?

Thanks.
 
Galling by definition is the cold welding of the metal.I wish I had a photo . Two soft pieces of metal ,without lube and under pressure,move against each other and weld at some places.As you continue to move them metal tears out from one piece so you end up with a rough surface.
 
Thanks, mete. I'm with SteveW13. I've heard the term, looked up the definition and understand what causes it, but I've never been sure if I'd recognize it if I saw it. Your description helps a lot.
 
Smearing may be another way to describe galling I guess.
Metal smears off one piece and fuses against another piece due to heat and friction.
 
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